January 02, 2007

When it was over, even Hollywood couldn't have scripted a more dramatic ending. This was the ultimate underdog story of a team that believed from the start, refused to give up even when it looked bleak and pulled off the improbable. It's one thing for a Cinderella team to upset a heavily favored opponent, but c'mon, this was ridiculous.

As we begin 2007 we can all be inspired by the kind of raw passion that Boise State exhibited. No matter what you do, passion matters.

October 27, 2006

Karl points to Nokia's very cool World 24h project. The project is displayed as a world map that goes and gets photo’s from flickr that have been taken with the Nokia Nseries phone and displays thumbnails of them using Geotags to map the time and place around the world.

October 04, 2006

I was cruising through the blogosphere today and came across David Armano's recent post on Logic+Emotion entitled, Manifesto Redux, in which he outlined his Incomplete Manifesto.

David's post reminded me that when I started Radar Communications, in 1999, I wrote Radar's Incomplete Manifesto to outline the principles on which the company would be founded. After a bit of searching I was able to find the original document.

It's nice to know that what started as a dream, sitting in alone my garage, still rings true after six years and a massive amount of growth, now working globally with over 40 clients as a consumer-centric market research and strategy firm.

Here is the core philosophy that was the spark for Radar :

The Incomplete Radar Manifesto

Radar’s journey begins. As a starting point, below are a set of unstated principles that make up this Manifesto. This Manifesto will evolve as we evolve. This will continue as we learn and become more intimate with the skills necessary to help our clients hear what’s happening in the real world.

Listen- It all starts here. This is what we do. We help companies listen to real people. Along the way we must also listen to the rhythms of the street, to our customers and to ourselves. We must constantly improve our listening skills. This is an intimate and private conversation. All aspects of our work with our clients should be honored as private conversations.

Consumers are People - Calling people consumers is not only shortsighted but also narrow minded. People are much more than consumers. They laugh, they cry and they have real lives.

Make a Profit – From profit comes freedom and from freedom comes creativity, from creativity comes joy. If we achieve our profit goals we will be liberated, giving us a better opportunity to have fun doing what we do.

Trust – All relationships are based on trust. Trust is the foundation where all creativity comes from. Not only should we trust or reporters and our clients but we must trust ourselves and our own instincts. Again, part of trust is knowing that the privacy of our clients and our reporters is honored.

Be Honest – Honesty shows our humanity and our ability to understand the issues that we work with. Never bury a problem. Always be honest.

Embrace Change – Change happens. We can either embrace it and move on or be paralyzed by it. We are only as good as our last project.

Be Creative – The process is important but creativity is the soul of the process. Constantly look for ways to be creative and bring a new perspective to an issue.

Follow Your Soul – If you’re not nourishing your soul and feel good about what you are doing then you should not do it. All of our work should expose a glimpse of Radar’s soul.

Explore Uncharted Territory – Go beyond what you think is possible. Go further, go deeper. Explore those places that scare you. Radar needs to take its clients where they are afraid to go.

Share Your Passion – Everything that Radar does needs to exude the passion that comes from listening to real people, on the streets. Share this passion with your team members and your clients.

Be Fearless – Bottom line, this is just work. Nobody’s going to die. What is there to be afraid of?

Give Back – Radar’s community has given it the base from which to grow and flourish. It is important to give back and share that success not only with the team but also with the community in which Radar lives.

Be Compassionate – Great listening skills start with compassion. All of us are hear to have fun, do good and get things done. Have compassion for everyone in the Radar family.

Inspire People Around You – If you want to have more fun get the people around you to have more fun. I want to have fun. Do You?

Understand the Process Intimately – Trust in the process. By knowing it intimately it will evolve. If Radar is to change the world its process must continually evolve.

Love the Difficulties – Sometimes work is hard. It’s the only time that things really change. Love it, its life.

Make Mistakes Faster – As we try and learn and do a better job for our clients we need to learn faster. The best way to learn is to make mistakes. So make lots of mistakes, just don’t make the same ones twice.

Laugh – Laughing cuts the tension, makes life more fun. We all screw up everyday. Who cares? Laugh at it and let it go.

Organization = Liberty – From being organized and focused gives Radar the liberation to be creative and thoughtful.

June 28, 2006

Advertising Age's Bob Garfield is writing a book based on his article last year, entitled Listenomics. What's cool about Bob's project is that he's writing the book on his blog and asking for your help. Can you say co-create?

June 26, 2006

I just got back from a 1200 mile road trip to do some rock climbing at the City of Rocks in Idaho. Road trips have a great way of teaching you many wonderful lessons. Here are some things that I learned from this past week that I need to remember when it comes to work:

It’s all about context – I used to drive a VW Eurovan. It was a great vehicle for camping. After having one for 15 years, I was used to the sneers I’d get from truckers and locals driving across states like Wyoming. Now I drive a Sportsmobile, which is a Ford E350 van. At the first truck stop we stopped at this trip a mean looking trucker sauntered over as I filled up the van with diesel. He gave me a big smile and said, “Now, that’s a cool Ford!” I also noticed how many truckers will give me a smile as we pass motoring down the highway. What I find quite ironic is that I run biodiesel in it, when I can find it, and have a big Blue Sun Biodiesel sticker on the back of the van.

Now driving the Big Rig (as my boys call it), I’m more of an enviro with the exterior of a redneck! It’s all about context and the ability to bridge those gaps with people who may be very different than you.

Let go of your ego – I love to climb. But, having two four-year-old boys, I can’t always think about trying to test myself on the hardest climbing route I can find. Instead of getting frustrated, I’ve accepted the fact that helping the boys push their plastic trucks off small cliffs can be just as gratifying as climbing a hard route. Remember, you are where you are. Enjoy it while you can.

Engage in your environment – Having climbed at the City of Rocks several times, I love the fact that you are completely out of touch with the rest of the world, that’s a rarity for me these days. By getting out of my day to day existence I feel a new source of creativity. If your job demands creativity, you have to find ways to engage in environments other than work to renew your passion.

That what scares you makes you stronger – The thing I like about climbing is that it scares me. Sitting below a route, getting ready to climb, I always get a bit nervous knowing that I am going to have to stretch my self both mentally and physically to attain the top of the climb. Satisfaction is always dependent on how much the route tested me. Likewise in business, I try to pick goals that will test me both mentally and physically. They are always so much more satisfying.